The Upcoming Removal is Hard to Accept

The Blm Billings Office released their Gather decision and EA. I was up late on Wednesday night reading it, and spent all day yesterday going through it again. Here is a link to it from Matt’s Blog: Link You can click the link or go to the left and click on “April 4, 2012”.

I knew it was coming, but it did not make it easier when I saw the report. I pretty much knew that they would be going forward with this gather. I was just hoping that it would never come. But it is here now and we must deal with it. Before I go on, I would like to make some things clear. I am here for the horses. I know Alex feels the same way. I love each one, and enjoy the time I have been able to spend with them. I am not “pro-BLM”, nor am I a BLM hater. I certainly do not agree with alot of their policies. But I do believe that there are some good local BLM people who are trying to work with us. I am not a “groupie” of any groups. I am my own person. Here for the horses. I form my own opinions on each thing that comes up about the horses. I weigh each thing separately and try to look at all sides of the issues. There are times for law suits, and I feel this proposed removal is not one of those times.

I found a list compiled of the horses that they plan to remove. They are listed in 3 Categories or “tiers” as the Blm has it listed. The first being the most likely ones to be taken and then the 2 tier would be the next, 3 the last and least likely to be removed.

As much as I hated looking at those names (there was not one name I liked seeing), I could see some reasoning behind some of them. First and foremost I want to make a big point. There could be up to 20-30 new foals born this year. That is a pretty big number. Why is that number so high when the PZP has been in place? For one, the PZP has only been in place for a few years. Some mares seem to be resisting its effects. The other reason is that there seems to be a pretty large number of mares that fall into that “No PZP” age group this year. So that being said let me go back to my point of this paragraph. If the BLM is not allowed to do this removal, due to a lawsuit being filed, well the next step that will be coming is a gather with the use of helicopters. I do not want that to happen. Do I think this range could support more horses? Most certainly the answer is yes. But until the AML is raised it won’t happen. Removing the horses with a bait trap method is much easier on them then a helicopter gather. So much easier.

We have to look at this situation reasonably and think it through. One thing is for certain. There will be a gather. That always seems to be the case here. It can be an easier one or the horses can be put through the stress of a helicopter gather. More horses will be removed then, and they may not be as selective as they seem to be right now. This type of removal is going to be done over several months time, creating less stress for the horses. A helicopter gather would be over a few days. I want to point out again, this removal is very hard to accept, but because of the current AML numbers it seems it has to be done.

There are a few names on the “1 tier” that Alex and I would like to see stay on the range, or at least be moved from the Tier 1 category. The reasons are not personal, but there seems to be an overlook of genetics here and we wanted to give this some attention. The first one is Kayenta. She is the daughter of Teton and Warbonnet. She is the only offspring of Teton and Warbonnet. Teton has other offspring on the range, but Kayenta is the only one they have together. The likelihood of Warbonnet having another foal with him is small, so we feel that leaving Kayenta on the range is important.

Kayenta, March 2012

Another one is Duke and Madonna’s daughter July. She has another full sibling that is listed on tier 2(which means may be removed). We would like to see these horse switched. Lariet was injured this past summer and her injury may cause her problems or even death if she is not removed, so placing her in Tier 1 and July in Tier 2 is the order we would rather see.

July, August, 2011.Lariet, August, 2011

Next is Leo, who is listed on Tier 1. He is the only living offspring of Custer. He does have a half-brother, Kaibob (same mother, Fiasco). Kaibob is listed on the Tier 2 list. Kaibob is clearing not as healthy as his brother Leo. We would like to see them switched around in their places.

The last in the group of Tier 1 horses that we would like to see moved to a different Tier is Kane. Kane is the only son of Sequoyah and Two Boots. Remember that Sequoyah is Cabaret’s mother. Since Cabaret is no longer alive this blood line is becoming much smaller.

Kane (black colt on left), July 2011

The Pryor Mountain Horses are luckier than some other wild horse herds in the west. Their adoption rate is very high. Most times they are 100% adopted. So all of these horses will go to good homes and won’t have to endure travel to long-term holding facilities like so many other horses have to do. I keep telling myself this. Over and over. It is supposed to make this a little easier, but somehow this upcoming removal is hard to accept.

I leave for the Pryors again, next week. I am looking forward to seeing the horses. I especially want to spend time with those who will no longer be there in a few months. This should be a wonderful time, looking forward to spring and new foals. But right now my thoughts are with those horses that will no longer be there. The horses will have to move forward and continue to survive and so they will and so must I.

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29 thoughts on “The Upcoming Removal is Hard to Accept”

I agree with you 100% in all your comments, including those about the BLM. I believe the Pryor range is very lucky in having such good connections, especially compared to what has happened in other areas. But still, it is hard to see this happening. On the other hand, I was also surprised to see the number of horses had climbed to 177 already, with more to come.

This is a very emotional issue, with so many people not bothering to really think before they act or research what is going on. I would also encourage people to do that.

Thanks for your thoughts — and your combined comments with Alex on those who will be going. Enjoy your next trip… photos may not come easy this time as you sit and just watch. But we will all appreciate anything you can share. We see through your eyes and words. Thanks.

Sandy- my heart is heavy as I read this report, and I sincerely hope that the “decision makers” are correct in their selection. I understand population management, so animals do not starve in the wild, yet culling is difficult indeed. I only hope that the culled herd find a safe life in caring homes. We can only hope.

Most of all I am grateful of your work with the Pryor horses, as perhaps through your observation and recommendations, some important horses will remain in the herd.

In the past, have you convinced the “decision makers” to leave some horses following your arguments on genetics?

With the US horse meat slaughterhouses in place again by Obama, I fear for the Wild Pryors. As you mentioned, most are adopted, yet is there an actual tracking formula in place to know where these horses end up?

Again, thank you from the bottom of my heart for your dedication and detailed documentation. I hope that you are coaching others to follow in your footsteps for decades to come. D.

Thank you for your comments. When a horse is adopted the adopter does not have title to the horse for 1 year. In that time period, a BLM person will visit (in the case of the Pryor horses I do believe that most horses did receive this visit) after the years time the BLM will give title to you if they feel the horse is in a good home (again I am only stating this from the Pryor end of things). Of course after that they can not keep track of them or tell the owner what they can or can not do. But I don’t know if I have ever heard of a Pryor Horse being sold in a sale situation where they may end up going to slaughter. I think there are enough people that want these horses that if someone needs to find another home for one it is easily found. Remember we are only talking about a small number of horses, not hundreds removed like in other places in the west.
No, I have never been able to sway decision makers. But I will continue to try! 🙂 That is part of the reason why Alex and I started this blog. Are hope is the the “decision makers” will read it and begin to think that we may have some creditable opinions.

The are branded. If you go back to my post about Fiero, you can see a photo of my filly, Valerosa and see her brand on her neck. The PMWMC has set up a registery for them. It would be nice if everyone would register their Pryor Horse with them, but it is not required.

I agree with you Sandy…I do not generalize or ” try” not to generalize with all things in life. I do not believe that all BLM are uncaring …as we know there are good and bad in all walks of life….You know way more then I do and being on the ground and seeing them, I appreciate all that you share for me to see and enjoy…I do believe however that the BLM, do not need to be gathering any of these Mustangs, with that said since they will be no matter what I hope they do leave the ones you have stated above.. I appreciate hearing that their adoption rate is high and can only hope that when they are adopted that it is to a “forever home”…I am also grateful that a Bait Trap method will be used as the other is simply , no other word but abusive. My heart goes out to you and any others that go to the Pryors and visit these wonderful horses and I feel your anguish in this blog. I know your next visit will be bitter sweet but I am so glad that you share all the horses you see, thanks, Sandy….

I also don’t like seeing the names of the horses on the list of removal.July and Kayenta really need to stay on the mountain.I don’t want to judge but I think that Kierra(Breeze) should stay instead of Jasmine,she is a rare smoky black filly.And I don’t like the fact that some rare colored horses could be removed only because their bands are easy to find and BLM can’t find the horses planned for removal.

On the bright side, I believe Hailstorm/Shadow is a smokey black roan and she will be left on the range. However, it’s hard to accept Kierra, Kitalpha, and so many other fillies being removed.
If you notice there are more fillies on the list than there are colts. Why is this? I mean why do they need to even out the male/female ratio? There always seems to be more mares than stallions–three or so mares to one stallion. Could this mean there will be smaller bands in the future (one or two mares to each stallion)?

Where did you find the list of the tiers? I would be interested in looking at it, too.

I am glad to read a post where your passion for the horses is clearly present, but it is also objective and looks at the reality of the situation.

One thing that I think will be missed by some in reading the BLM report is that the situation on the range with the numbers isn’t one of mere acreage. It has a lot more to do with the way the horses utilize the range. Visiting the range often, the horses follow pretty predictable patterns and locations that most can be found. There are some areas on the range that seem like they would be great and should have more horses in them, but I never see any there. If the horses all spread out evenly and had their own little sections of the range, I think they could sustain a higher number. Yet then they wouldn’t be the horses we love. They have their traditional patterns and we know where we can find them fighting for mares or enjoying a romp in the late snow. We can’t ask the horses to “please stop grazing here and use over here a little more”. If not this year because of lawsuits, eventually at some point in the future a removal will occur, and it is hard but will benefit the overall herd. I spent some of my childhood in Massachusetts and saw a starving deer overpopulation at Cane’s Beach, and would not wish that on any animal.

There are so many people that love the Pryor horses, isn’t there some way we could find to get all the removed horses and keep them all together somewhere? If I had any land at all, I would get as many as the land could sustain and relocate them there. Unfortunately, I am a poor teacher. With the worldwide recognition of the pryor herd and groups like TCF, and even groups like The Nature Conservancy or something, isn’t there a way to organize and possibly set up a “pryor II” herd somewhere? If anyone wants to buy land near Sheridan, I will get as many horses as I could to put on it and promise to watch them for you 😉

My daughter and I are going to head over today/tomorrow to see them a little more. She is sad some will be gone, too. Hopefully Lukachukai isn’t on the Teir 1, as that is the horse her and I were the first to see right after birth. We will always have that personal bond with her.

Hi Shawn, Enjoy your trip. I look forward to your photos and report. If you click on the BLM link in my first sentence it will take you to the BLM website, from there click on the first link and download the Environmental Assessment link, download the PDF and it is on page 13 of that document. Another good one to read all the way through.
Also, thank you for making the point about the range. People that have never been there don’t realize, that a good part of the mountain is covered in snow for up to 5 or more months a year.

Your comments are also appreciated, Shawn. Especially about how the horses are using the range. There was a good article in the Billings Gazette on this… from 2009, I think. It might help others to read it.

The list of horses to be gathered appears on pages 10 and 11 when I look at the Environmental Assessment Document, DOI BLM MT 0010-2012-0001-EA, both on here and straight from the pryor wild website.

No matter what pages it’s on, it hurts to see it, but I have to agree that if a gather must happen, we have to think first about what’s best for the horses in the long run. In this case, delaying the inevitable IS NOT what’s best for them. The proposed gentler bait trapping gather method is time consuming by it’s very nature and will not accomplish the goal in time if it is once again delayed by legal squabling. And, I’m in agreement that the younger horses are much more likely to adjust positively to being adopted. It’s just common sense that the longer the animal runs free, the harder it would be for it to adjust to change.

Now, if someone out there can come up with good SOLID, indisputable PROOF that the information being used to make these decisions about the Range and horses at this time is faulty, I hope they bring it on, but not right before the current required gather. It needs to be done when it won’t bring on more stress and danger for the horses with a helicopter gather that would be necessitated by another time crunch.

I am also secure in my belief that the folks involved with the Pryor Mountain Wild Mustang Center and Pryor Mountain Mustang Assoc., which includes people who have been fighting for the horses, and who have known the original saviors of the herd (the Tilletts), since before the Range was officially established, have the best interest of the horses at heart and are the BEST INFORMED about the facts involved in all this. Unlike the majority of commenters on related websites, many of those people have lived right there, next door to the Range, ALL THEIR LIVES, and have had a definite positive impact on how the BLM has handled the balancing of the public’s love for these horses with the necessity of looking after the health of the land they’re entrusted with. This herd wouldn’t still exist for us to worry over if it weren’t for those people, and I can only hope there will always be folks like them to carry on with the same dedication.

Sandy, I hope your opinions about the best candidates for removal are considered, but if the plan doesn’t change, I’m pretty sure it will be for priority reasons. I truly appreciate your level-headed approach to the situation and hope that others will follow your lead. I also hope that you share your conclusions on some of the sites that are visited by many people who are ill-informed and overly vocal at the same time. It’s hard to hear a voice of reason if you’re talking too loudly to hear it. Maybe one or two would widen their point of view…

Sandy, thank you for being a voice of reason. The list made it all too real seeing actual names, but on the other hand I am relieved that the BLM appears to be making an effort to maintain genetics and that it won’t be some random removal. I too don’t agree with everything the BLM does, like lumping so many comments as one. I took the time to write a letter (not a form letter) and who knows if it really was read. I’ve spent some time this morning reading other blogs and posts on FB and am appalled at the number of uneducated, disparaging comments and even threats to the BLM. Why don’t people realize how uneffective that is?! They will be written off as fanatics, complete waste of their energy. Sad really. We need more people like you, Alex, and Shawn (great comments) who really understand all the issues at play here and continue to help educate other wild horse advocates out there. Thank you again for your blog and commitment to the Pryor mustangs.

Is there anyway you can talk with the BLM and give them your expertise on your findings here? I bet you can find someone that is willing to listen. May be worth the effort. Good luck on your next trip and I sure wish I could adopt one of them and bring them back to Maryland.

There is an updated PDF that Matt from the Pryor updated on the removal with the tier groups and such. It gives a better visual on some of the horses and who there dams are and if they have any further offspring on the range. I completly agree on the Kayenta…she is not only an unusual color that I have never seen especially on the range but War Bonnet is scheduled to be on PZP the rest of her life so the odds of having another foal period for her not only with Teton are pretty unlikely. Also to that fact she is 19 years old this year so it would be nice to keep some of her unique roaning genetics such as Kayenta on the range. She is young and has survived in extremely good health.

The BLM recently announced that they will move forward with their plans for removal. The removals can start as soon as June 4, 2012 and run through September.
This is very difficult for me to accept this. I have re-blogged my friend Sandy Elmore’s blog entry on this upcoming removal. I agree with all that Sandy has to say, and wanted to share this with you. We must all look at this calmly.

I’m saddened by the removal, I don’t want the horses to be removed.. But if they are going to do it at least they should do it right. I agree with your comments on the horses in the tiers. They should be moved. I feel bad for Lariat though… she seems to be doing alright. Though if she’s removed would the adopters be able to help her heal?? I’m concerned for them.. Please keep us updated, thanks.

Thank you – I guess it is all understandable if you live in the States and know what EA, BLM, PZP, and AML mean. These days you have to be pretty savvy with your letter combinations -I know where NY, LA and AC are but organization letters mean nothing to me. But in any case, I would say that it seems all this is a case of mankind trying to manage the space of the wild and balancing it with the overtaking of ever-increasing urbanization, ruralization and populization of the earth in general. I am sure that everyone is doing the best they can under the circumstances such as they are – or , atleast. I gather so. If nothing else, I guess it is important that mankind understand that there are other being besides themselves on this earth and they too have rights to space and life as they understand it. We may have VIPs among us but we are not TMVIBOE (the most very important beings on earth) by a long shot. Thank you God we do have a conscience and try to act nobly – by choice or not – and remember we are all on this earth together and must find a way survive as such. Thank you for your posts and the attention you shed on the plight of other species besides our own.